


In A Crowd Of Thousands

by onthelasttrain



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, No Curse AU, Young Captain Hook | Killian Jones, Young Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Young Emma Swan, Young Emma Swan, inspired by anastasia broadway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 12:20:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22969888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onthelasttrain/pseuds/onthelasttrain
Summary: A young boy by the name of Killian Jones catches a glimpse of the young Crown Princess Emma in a parade, and despite them being from different worlds, the two form a connection in a moment.
Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan
Comments: 11
Kudos: 39





	In A Crowd Of Thousands

**Author's Note:**

> Pro tip: do not post fics first thing in the morning. You may do something dumb like forget to put in a summary.

**Killian’s POV**

It was stiflingly hot; the burning sun and the overwhelming crowds making Killian feel as though he was suffocating. He fidgeted at his mother’s side and wriggled and shifted to try to get a glance of the path that the royal family of Misthaven would soon come travelling down. He would get occasional glimpses of the road before it was blocked by another leg. Sweat trickled down his back and into his shirt, making his back sting. He wished to God the royals would hurry up so he could go home.

He looked to the side and saw his mother deep in conversation with someone he had never seen before. He tugged on her skirt aggressively, but she brushed him off and shooed him away as if he was a troublesome dog, not the child she had raised for ten years. Frustrated, Killian decided to leave, let her be alone if that was what she wanted. He was quite a small, thin child, which was fortunate for him as it enabled him to weave around people, who were too focussed on the road to notice a dirty street rat pushing past them, and end up in the front row of the crowd. He sighed in relief; it was far cooler up here and the air wasn’t so thick that he felt he was choking.

He seemed to be just in time too, for someone up ahead shouted “look, there they come!” and he could make out the shape of a carriage in the distance, getting closer and closer. The King and Queen were there, dressed in white and gold silks and bright jewels, giving small waves to the crowd, making them erupt in cheers that nearly knocked Killian over, they were so loud.

But they weren’t the ones Killian was paying attention to. He was looking at the young princess who sat next to her parents. He knew Princess Emma was only eight years old, but she was sitting like her mother; looking straight ahead, her hands folded in her lap, a small smile on her lips. But she looked bored, and he knew she must have been dreadfully uncomfortable up there.

As if of their own accord, his legs started moving as he began jogging up to the carriage, dodging the guards, dashing past them or ducking under their legs, running parallel to the carriage. She didn’t seem to notice, up on her high carriage, too far from him.

“Princess Emma,” he called out. “Princess Emma!” He reached his hand up to her, not sure why he wanted her to notice him, half convinced she wouldn’t.

But she did. She turned and peered slightly over the edge, her hands gripping her chair so that she wouldn’t fall. She looked at him, frowning at first, not upset or angry but confused. Then her face softened, and she smiled the loveliest smile he had ever seen. He was even sure he heard a giggle escape from her lips. She didn’t turn her back, just kept smiling at him, and he at her. If he didn’t know better, he’d have thought he was in love with her.

**Emma's POV**

The boy wasn’t one that should have stuck out in a crowd. Thin with a head of dark hair and a face covered in dirt. He looked like the type of boy she’d walk past in the street. And yet here she was, completely amused by this boy who had dodged in between the guards and got her attention.

He kept running alongside the carriage. Emma wanted to take his outstretched hand and run away with him, ask him his name. But she knew she couldn’t, so she settled for continuing to watch him, smiling despite her best efforts not to.

Eventually he began to tire out, his run slowing until he was walking, and she knew he’d be still soon. She selfishly didn’t want him to stop, she could watch him chase her forever. She instead settled for waving enthusiastically at him, forgetting how her mother had told her to be poised.

In return, he made an elegant bow, but kept his head up to look at her.

The carriage kept travelling on and on, and soon the boy became nothing more than a dot on a long, dusty road on a hot day. Just another face in the crowd.

Emma wasn’t sure what was special about this boy. She had met so many people over the years and they had been fascinating and wonderful, and yet none of them stayed with her the way this boy did. She didn’t even know his name, who he was, where he was from, what he did for fun. But something in her heart made her know, even at her young age, that if she was shoved into that vast crowd, she would find him again.

_The parade travelled on_

_With the sun in my eyes, you were gone_

_But I knew even then_

_In a crowd of thousands_

_I'd find you again_

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos make a happy writer and a happy writer writes fics and fics make a happy fandom. But please refrain from commenting asking me to write more. I have no intentions of doing so, and those comments are not as flattering as you might think they are.


End file.
